ORA long polyp toadstool vs TCN Weeping Willow

Brian1f1 · May 28, 2018

I was wondering if anyone has any incite into these two strains (indeed, are they two different strains?)?

I’ve searched for information and adult photos with little success. I will attach photos of frags, but honestly at frag size I can’t really tell how differently they may appear as they mature.

Also, I was wondering if these long polyps toadstools differ from other toadstools substantially in care requirements for looking their best or in general hardiness?

Thanks!

ORA long polyp

TCN “weeping willow”

Angel_Anthias lover · May 28, 2018

I'm not sure but I believe the weeping willows polyps move freely with the currents where as the long polyp has much more rigid polyps which generally stay in place

Genomecop · May 29, 2018

Check out the 3:54 mark.

Brian1f1 · May 29, 2018

Genomecop said:
Check out the 3:54 mark.

It’s super awesome isn’t it? Thanks for sharing.

fragguy · Jun 25, 2018

Angel_Anthias lover said:
I'm not sure but I believe the weeping willows polyps move freely with the currents where as the long polyp has much more rigid polyps which generally stay in place

That is correct. Without question, they are different toadstools.

The polyp length on the Weeping Willow will reach close to four inches. It is that extreme polyp length that allows it to flow with the current so elegantly. The ORA coral polyp length is roughly about one inch. Another very noticeable difference is the very tip of the polyps. On the weeping willow, the tips open to very large flat daisy like polyp tentacles compared to the ORA coral which has small polyp tentacles that tend to stay closed or open about half way. The Weeping willow in the LA picture above has not opened fully, in both total polyp length as well as the tentacles.

Attached is an image of one of our frags for better comparison.

Brian1f1 · Jun 25, 2018

fragguy said:
That is correct. Without question, they are different toadstools.

The polyp length on the Weeping Willow will reach close to four inches. It is that extreme polyp length that allows it to flow with the current so elegantly. The ORA coral polyp length is roughly about one inch. Another very noticeable difference is the very tip of the polyps. On the weeping willow, the tips open to very large flat daisy like polyp tentacles compared to the ORA coral which has small polyp tentacles that tend to stay closed or open about half way. The Weeping willow in the LA picture above has not opened fully, in both total polyp length as well as the tentacles.

Attached is an image of one of our frags for better comparison.

Thanks for the great information. Mine has never looked different than the LA one. I’ll show a pic from a couple weeks ago. Why would it consistently open to this size, shape? It looked that way for weeks. The polyps were ridged. I had it in pretty high flow and relatively high light, I’d read somewhere it likes SPS like flow (though mine wasn’t that high). Does it prefer low flow for full extension?

Thanks so much! Very little info on these!

Sorry about the photo quality. I need to get an app.

fragguy · Jun 25, 2018

Brian1f1 said:
Thanks for the great information. Mine has never looked different than the LA one. I’ll show a pic from a couple weeks ago. Why would it consistently open to this size, shape? It looked that way for weeks. The polyps were ridged. I had it in pretty high flow and relatively high light, I’d read somewhere it likes SPS like flow (though mine wasn’t that high). Does it prefer low flow for full extension?

Thanks so much! Very little info on these!

Sorry about the photo quality. I need to get an app.

We keep/grow them in moderate flow but have seen them under high flow with good polyp extension. Yours seems to be retracted. Too much light will cause it to retract some. My suggestion is to relocate it to lower light. Maybe even drop it on the sand and watch it for a couple of weeks and see what it does. Experiment a little in placement location.

Just John · Nov 1, 2021

Brian1f1 said:
Thanks for the great information. Mine has never looked different than the LA one. I’ll show a pic from a couple weeks ago. Why would it consistently open to this size, shape? It looked that way for weeks. The polyps were ridged. I had it in pretty high flow and relatively high light, I’d read somewhere it likes SPS like flow (though mine wasn’t that high). Does it prefer low flow for full extension?

Thanks so much! Very little info on these!

Sorry about the photo quality. I need to get an app.

I know this is a really old post, but how did things go with this? Were you able to get it to look like a weeping willow toadstool? I was thinking of getting one of these frags.

nano reef · Jun 25, 2022

I am looking for one myslef!

Chlorinated · Jun 25, 2022

Not the OG weeping willow but close.

Just John · Jun 25, 2022

Chlorinated said:
Not the OG weeping willow but close.

Nice! where did that come from?

dan55 · Jun 25, 2022

TCN Weeping Willow Growout

Chlorinated · Jun 26, 2022

Just John said:
Nice! where did that come from?

Local reefer here in MA. Not sure he is on this forum. He's had a colony for years and frags from time to time. Been waiting a long time to get my hands on it.

PhishScaper · Sep 24, 2023

fragguy said:
That is correct. Without question, they are different toadstools.

The polyp length on the Weeping Willow will reach close to four inches. It is that extreme polyp length that allows it to flow with the current so elegantly. The ORA coral polyp length is roughly about one inch. Another very noticeable difference is the very tip of the polyps. On the weeping willow, the tips open to very large flat daisy like polyp tentacles compared to the ORA coral which has small polyp tentacles that tend to stay closed or open about half way. The Weeping willow in the LA picture above has not opened fully, in both total polyp length as well as the tentacles.

Attached is an image of one of our frags for better comparison.

This is great! Which one is this? ORA? Tcn? Whitelyn?